Poly High’s stellar baseball postseason came to an end Friday. The Engineers dropped a 6-2 decision to Southern Maryland’s Huntingtown in a Class 3A state quarterfinal contest in Baltimore City.
Hunter Thomas went 2-of-4 with a run scored and Jack Cassidy was 2-of-3 with an RBI to lead for the Hurricanes. Trevor Robbins allowed six hits and struck out eight batters in a complete game effort.
Huntingtown put three runs across in the second against the Baltimore City champ Engineers, propelling it to the Class 3A state semifinals. The Hurricanes will play C. Milton Wright, Tuesday evening at 7 at Joe Cannon Stadium in Anne Arundel County.
Poly’s breakout run, including a first region championship, along with another city title, is over. Nearly a hundred parents and spectators watched as the Engineers (14-3 overall) come up short of a historic first state semifinal berth.
Longtime Poly coach Corey Goodwin said their run wasn’t a fluke.
“We played well all year long, we deserve to be here. We deserve to be advancing, we just didn’t play well enough today and sometimes that’s how the game goes,” Goodwin said.
Jacob Aldouby was 2 for 4 for Poly while Rashid McLeod went 1-for-3 with a run. The Engineers’ defense, a strong suit this season, had a couple of miscues that were costly.
“We worked everyday with maximum effort; we definitely put in a lot of work so yes it hurts real bad,” Poly senior first basemen Corey Brown.
Poly won its second straight city crown, beating City at Johns Hopkins University’s Babb Field. The Engineers followed that with a dominant 13-0 victory over Towson in the North Region I final.
Towson reached the 3A state final a year ago.
“We’ve been to the regional championship a lot of times and that was the first time we actually pulled it through,” said Goodwin. “We did it in grand fashion, and that’s something for these kids to hang their heads on – that they made history, and this is a history-making team. I’m proud of these guys.”
Being a part of this program has meant “everything” to Brown, who will continue his baseball career at St. Mary’s College. He reflected back on his freshman and sophomore years that was taken away due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Goodwin, in his 22nd season, said Poly’s leadership, togetherness and support from players’ families were some of things that made the 2023 season special.
“These kids absolutely love each other and that is the mark of a good team,” he said. “We will be back. Mark my words.”
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